Airbnb continues to make animals a priority while Groupon receives a dismal score of 4%.
World Animal Protection’s newest Tracking the Travel Industry report provides an updated ranking of the largest travel companies in the United States on their animal welfare commitments. The report–the only one of its kind–highlights which companies are working to protect wild animals, and which continue to exploit them.
We worked with the University of Surrey, which independently reviewed and analyzed the public commitments of top travel companies. Airbnb is among the current US leaders in protecting wild animals. The company’s animal welfare policies, created in coordination with World Animal Protection, contributed to it receiving the second-highest overall score of 67%.
Four companies–Groupon, GetYourGuide, Trip.com, and Klook–received scores below 7% with Groupon receiving the lowest score of 4%. They do not have policies prohibiting working with captive wildlife venues. These companies are severely failing wild animals by selling and promoting harmful and exploitative animal “experiences,” including elephant rides, selfies with tiger cubs, and swimming with dolphins.
World Animal Protection urges travelers not to book any experiences through these companies.
The assessment scores companies across four key areas:
- Commitment: Does the company have a public animal welfare policy against captive wildlife attractions that applies across all brands?
- Targets and performance: Does the company have time-bound targets for meeting its animal welfare commitments and report on progress?
- Changing industry supply: Does the company engage with its suppliers and the industry to implement wildlife-friendly changes?
- Changing consumer demand: Does the company provide resources to empower its customers to make wildlife-friendly travel choices?
Overall scoring chart
A chart that scores several travel companies on their animal welfare commitments.
To learn more, read our report and check out our information page where you can find resources on animal-friendly travel.
To take action as part of our active campaign, comment on Groupon’s LinkedIn post and urge the company to stop selling animal cruelty on its website.